DAIRY INDUSTRY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIV, Issue 19717, 17 August 1927, Page 18

DAIRY INDUSTRY.

THREE MILKINGS A DAY.

VIEW OF A FRIESIANITE. POINTS FOR CONSIDERATION. In certain circles, mainly where preference for one breed of dairy cattle seems manifest, it has been insinuated that the Friesian victory at the last dairy show was largely due to the innovation of three milkings per day, writes the editor of the British Friesian Journal, who goes on to add that the principle involved is larger than that of inter-breed rivalry, and should only be considered on a national basis. An assertion that uneconomical milking has triumphed over economical production is unsupported by evidence, and is inaccurate and misleading.

The plain truth is that many cows are unprofitable even on two milkings, and these would probably bo even more uneconomical on three milkings. Cows vary greatly, and hard-and-fast rules concerning them are difficult to apply. But in the light of past experience this much is certain—that there exist many cows that pay handsomely for a third milking, and that must be milked three times daily. Some .cows, such as those that break world's records, even need and pay for four milkings daily. If a cow could be bred to yield enough milk it would surely pay to milk her ten times daily. The cow herself is the consideration, and no farmer will milk her three times daily unless it pays him to do so. Without three milkings daily the great and rapid progress made during recent years in milk production and in dairy farming would not have been possible, and the fact should be faced that heavy yielders must be treated and managed differently from inferior or ordinary producers. If the best possible cattle are to be sent to the dairy show, which is the national exhibition for its industry, three times milking is necessary, and accordingly wise, says the British Friesian Journal. The plea that certain breeds were handicapped by three times milking does not seem logical, inasmuch as other breeds beside the Friesian adopted the principle and improved considerably on their performances of the previous year. Those who utter platitudes about natural conditions should watch a calf running with its dam. Neither observes the man-made doctrine of milking being limited to twice daily. Such critics should also consider for one moment the difference between the modern dairy cow of more than average ability and the cow in a state of nature giving just enough milk to suckle her offspring for a limited period. The plain facts are that ordinary cows do not pay for three times milking, but that the heaviest producers must be milked more than twice if the utmost advantage is to be taken of their possibilities for profit production. Some cows cannot be made to give 600 gallons in the year; others cannot be prevented from producing three times that amount. Is the inferior animal alone entitled to consideration ?